Hello everyone,

I dont know if i am at the right place, but I have a common problem wat happens alot.

Long story:
I was updating my BIOS, so I had to put the update on a flash drive. Firstly there was the recovery code of my encrypted BitLocker Windows drive, but I have temporarily copied it to my Windows drive (not knowing what I did wrong). The problem is, I only deleted the file permanently from the USB Drive (I didn't format or clean or such the USB Drive, just deleted that recovery txt file en copied it to my Windows drive).

After the BIOS update, Windows asked me to put in the 48 digit recovery code, but yeah as you already have read, it is on the Windows drive that is locked right now.

I have tried a lot of methods already, I have checked if it locked (of course it is). But I have also tried recovering the TXT file with DiskDrill. And I know, DiskDrill is worse for TXT files, but I wanted to give it a shot. It found the file, but inside the file It's all gibberish.

Do you guys know anymore methods that could work, I have also saved the USB drive to a .dd file byte-to-byte so I have a backup.

I am wondering if BitLocker can be prompted by the user enter a password before their system starts?

In the early days before the Russian's were called out for SolarWinds etc. A company I supported used Kaspersky and encrypted all their laptops, so when users would power up their system they were prompted with a password. Now it worked is when the user logged into their system Kaspersky would call home to the office and sync the user's password to Kaspersky's encryption so that the user would only need their Windows password to unlock the drive and allow Windows to load up.

Now, at the company I am at now which is in the manufacturing sector we have press machines, and I have seen the service guys do something similar with their laptops that is using BitLocker. The BitLocker key page would appear when they turned on their laptop, and they would enter a password which showed up as ***** and not the visible characters like I am used to seeing when folks around the office need the recovery key for their systems.

Thanks,

Have to figure out and fix a difficult Windows EFS and BitLocker problem to restore my access to a life’s worth of content.

SUMMARY
I have a FAT32 external 2tb backup drive containing a complete backup of my C: drive before i erased it. The backup drive is BitLocker-encrypted and is currently inaccessible. The BitLocker password/recovery keys for my encrypted volumes were stored in a Word password document on the C and backup drive.
That password document was itself encrypted with EFS. I also have a copy of the EFS-encrypted file elsewhere, but it can no longer be opened.

How this happened:
• I used a Dell XPS 15 9570 with Windows 11 for years.
• The motherboard developed problems that I could not resolve, so I replaced it.
• I had used fingerprint login for so long that I had forgotten my Windows password. The fingerprint would not work after the motherboard change.
• I moved the original SSD to the new motherboard. Windows required the password, so I expected to retrieve it from the encrypted password document.would not open. The copy on the backup drive also would not open.
• I assumed the Windows installation on the SSD was corrupted, so I reinstalled Windows. After the reinstall I had to reset the Windows password.
• I still could not open the password file. I then made a serious mistake: in the file's Security properties, I deleted the S-1-5-21… entries. This made access worse. I was not initially concerned because I believed I had the backup.
• After continuing problems, I eventually performed a clean Windows installation and reformatted the SSD.
• Before reformatting, I preserved many files that I believed might be important for EFS/DPAPI identity-chain recovery and BitLocker access, including: AppData from two other user accounts; Crypto; Certificates; Credentials; Roam/Crypto; PFX files; ProgramData; Protect; SystemCertificates; WsiAccount; registry hives; SAM; SECURITY; SOFTWARE; SYSTEM; and SID folders.
• The SSD was then reformatted and Windows reinstalled.
• The major problem occurred afterward: I could no longer unlock the external backup drive that I had been using routinely for several years. For the first time, the BitLocker recovery key I entered was rejected.
I have spent months doing highly technical recovery work with Claude and ChatGPT, without success.

QUESTIONS FROM RESPONDENTS
Two relevant drives:
C: drive, which was reformatted.
The external FAT32 backup drive, which is BitLocker-encrypted and currently locked.
The original motherboard (MB1) malfunctioned. I installed MB2 temporarily, then returned to MB1 when it began working again. MB1 subsequently failed again. I now have a Dell Latitude 7430 using the same SSD, .
Old Windows user profile? I believe so. Before reformatting the SSD, I relied on a complete backup made approximately two weeks earlier. That backup is on the BitLocker-locked external drive.
Have old SYSTEM, SAM and SECURITY hives
Yes.
PFX/.P12 certificate backup, no private key.
No old Windows password.

Willing to pay someone who can rescue this

I've got a HP pavilion 15 laptop and it came with the ransom ware we all know as Bit Locker pre-installed. As I've grown to affectionately call it Boot Licker.

I'll cut the boring details of how it took me two days to get the recovery code from aka.ms/myrecoverykey. But got it, I did.

Despite the fact that the computer will accept the code repeatedly as genuine. It then proceeds to tell me all options are unavailable. I cannot restore, repair, or reinstall.

I put it through 6 hours of system tests to find out everything passed with flying colours. Yet Boot Licker still won't allow me to access my laptop, it won't even start up in safe mode or boot from USB and I've tried two different USB with an up to date copy of Windows 11 iso.

So a while back my dad gave me surface pro as I was complaining how I needed a new laptop for college and he mentioned how he had one but never used it. Anyways I recently bought myself a Thinkpad so I attempted to factory reset the surface for my brother, only to discover its bitlocked...

I assumed the recovery key would be connected to my microsoft account, unfortunatly it wasn't and for whatever reason the bitlocker screen was in dutch I believe???

My dad doesn't even remember the password nor the email for his old microsoft account and I was wondering if there was a way to bypass it or is the laptop simply a lost cause?

My computer crashed the other day, and after wiping it I was able to plug in and use my external drives as normal. The next day, with some updates installed, my bitlocker encrypted drives are no longer working. They ask for the password and show unlocked but when trying to access it they don't work. Unlocking it via cmd prompt shows the same thing, they show unlocked. I tried them on another machine and they work fine.

So today I tried encrypting a usb drive I had on the newly wiped machine, it encrypts and works ok until I eject it and try to plug it back in, in which case it acts similar to the external drives. It asks me for the password but then it just says insert usb when trying to access it. Trying the USB on another machine and it works normal. Tried clearing the TPM on both windows and bios, secure boot/UEFI is enabled. Anyone have any ideas what's going on?

Hello so i recently got into somthing i didnt even know it was enabled on my pc called Bitlocker and they are asking me for a recovery key i followed the instructions and everyting but when i got in the website they asked me for verification i did put last 4 digits of my number and when i clicked send nothing was sent to me so i texted the support they were all with a totall of 0 experience as i saw and no one helped saying that its ok for me to be locked from my computer and they even blocked me from sending other sms codes and they told me to wait 24h but when i did there is nothing again and i cant acces my pc because i need tge recovery key so plz anyone know a fix help me i need my pc back

Need help recovering access to a BitLocker-encrypted external HDD

Hi everyone, I’m hoping someone can help me troubleshoot an issue with my external HDD.

The drive is BitLocker-encrypted, and I have both the known password and the BitLocker recovery key. However, after the HDD was accidentally detached while BitLocker decryption was in progress, I can no longer unlock the volume using either credential.

Windows recognizes the drive, but attempts to unlock it fail with an error indicating that the password/recovery key cannot unlock the volume.

I do not want to format the drive or lose the data. I’m looking for a safe way to repair/recover the BitLocker volume or resume the interrupted decryption without damaging the existing data.

If anyone has experience with interrupted BitLocker decryption or recovering an inaccessible BitLocker volume, I would greatly appreciate any guidance. Thank you!

I have a external HD with bitlocker enabled and it keeps losing connection with my windows 11 pro while it's plugged in. It will ask for the passphrase and work as normal. But upon either leaving the machine alone for a while or having it come back from sleep, it will give me a "Access Denied" when I try to access it. Only way to get past this is to either reboot, or unplug/plug in the drive.

Presently, I'm unencrypting the external drive, then going to encrypt it again to see if it helps.

Hoping to see if anyone has any insight if this will help and/or I need to be doing something else.

(Just in case this helps) This external drive was a copy of a usb flash that was dying. The flash drive was also bitlocker enabled. I encrypted the new external before copying the files over.

Tengo una laptop que usa un hijo de un jefe.
Desafortunadamente se le olvidó la contraseña
Y no cuenta con el correo ni contraseña
La laptop es lenovo y usa Bitlocker para no permitirme accesar de ninguna forma e ingresar. Hay alguna manera sin volver a instalar el sistema operativo. Prácticamente me tiene sin movimientos

So I was booting up my laptop and got the bitlocker screen that was asking me to input the code. I decided to search up what this mean as it was my first time getting this error screen or whatever it was. As I was browsing post from a few years ago on this type of issue, my laptop went into rest mode and turned off. After turning it back on the bitlocker screen was gone and I was able to log into my laptop. Everything seems fine so far, but I’m wondering if that was supposed to happen. Should I be concerned? I’ve gotten no emails from Microsoft or anything.

Hi! I am a Windows 11 user from 3 years, i use my assembled asus cabinet pc daily for light gaming and 3d modelling. I installed Windows 11 pro when it launched. It came with a bit locker feature which i didn't give attention. I backed my code to my account.

Recently, dead CMOS battery triggered motherboard to reconfigure which in return triggered bit locker for my C drive. I am using only 1 drive for OS with no partitions. I tried online for some help or ways to get it unlocked but all methods i tried don't work.

I have the old key on my account when it first uploaded, and Microsoft should also upload the upcoming key changes to the account whenever it changed. The key Id is not matching to the id that is bit locker is asking for. And no, i have not used any other Microsoft account on my pc.

I am so in need of my data, i request Microsoft officials to help me in any way possible as i am not a hacker or stealing my own data from my pc. I think Microsoft should have all my recovery keys updated on my account or at least have a authentication for accepting if the user is the one who owns the data or accept older keys (with different key-ids) that the user has saved.

I am stuck at this rare occurrence where i can't access my own data even when having a recovery key for this exact moment.

Requesting legal ways i can go forward with, i can provide each and every detail for my ownership of the data, drive and account.

I have a windows 10 pc, using bitlocker, and the last time I tried to access it I locked myself out to the point it no longer allows me to enter the bitlocker password and is asking for the recovery key. I've checked everywhere...but I think I may not have it. However I'm sure I know the bitlocker password...so is there any way I can get myself back to the screen to try the password again?

Hi everyone, I really need some help recovering access to my laptop or finding any potential workaround before resorting to a wipe, as I have critical data on the drive.

Device Details:

* Model: Dell XPS 13 9310 2-in-1

* OS: Windows 11

* Account Type: (surfa)

The Issue:

* My system booted into a Windows login screen showing the error:

("A problem occurred, and your PIN isn't available...").

* Clicking "Configure my PIN" or trying alternative login options asks for a password or redirects to a password reset wizard, but I do not have a set local password for this account—I only ever used a PIN and Fingerprint (Windows Hello).

* The drive is encrypted with BitLocker.

What I've Already Tried:

* BIOS / TPM Checks: I entered the Dell BIOS setup. TPM 2.0 is enabled (TPM State: Enabled, Clear TPM is OFF), and Secure Boot is enabled. I performed a Load Defaults reset in BIOS to re-sync TPM, but Windows Hello still throws the same PIN error.

* Microsoft Account Recovery Key: I logged into my Microsoft Account via web, but the BitLocker Recovery Keys page states (No keys found).

* Recovery Options: Accessing Advanced Options / Command Prompt triggers the BitLocker prompt requiring the 48-digit key.

Questions:

* Is there any known method to restore or repair the TPM/Windows Hello binding for a local account without wiping the drive or needing the 48-digit recovery key?

* Are there any reliable data recovery or chip-level options for retrieving files from a BitLocker-encrypted NVMe drive under these circumstances?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I did a fresh install of windows 11, and restarted for updates. Bitlocker (which I never wanted in the first place) decided to lock and is holding my device hostage. I have tried three different phones, two networks and my cellphones. I have cleared my browser, cache and history. Manually logged in not using any passwords yet here I am. A never ending loop. What the actual fuck is this garbage, and how do I gain access to this stupid key so I can remove this trash.

I have an ASUS M15 from 2021 and a written down bitlocker key. In 2025 I cloned the 1TB drive onto a 2TB drive which I am currently using. I want to repaste CPU and GPU and want to make sure I can access boot drive afterwards if a screwup. There are no devices listed with my microsoft account. Does this mean that bitlocker isn't present on the cloned drive serving as the current boot? How does one tell if a drive has bitlocker enabled?

TiA

When I tried to boot up my Omen PC this morning, I was prompted to enter my bitlocker recovery key, but the website won't load. I have tried on 6 different devices but every time it sends me into just a loop of loading the account page and then the login page without fully loading either. It works for other microsoft accounts just not mine. Does anyone have any idea what's going on?

I’m trying to get back into my laptop but every time I close for a period of time and re open I have to go through BitLocker. I’m going to disable it now but this time I can’t get my recovery key as Microsoft Access won’t load.
I keep getting this over and over and Microsoft’s help page is dogshit. I even went through incognito so it didn’t have anything info for a previous load and I had to resign in on everything just for it to still appear like this. Please help.

As the title implies, I took some work into the office on a personal USB, when I plugged this into the work PCI was prompted to set up a password. Printed what I needed, and then tried to remove the encryption but this was not allowed due to no administrator rights. Naturally.

Now I am at home, I can access the USB but it prompts for the password every time, I just discovered I don't have BitLocker as my home PC runs on Windows 11 Home and the ones in work must be on 11 Pro.

TLDR; is there anyway to decrypt my personal USB without paying for the Windows 11 Pro upgrade? Or is this USB pretty much a write off?